2018 NBA Draft: 3 reasons the Detroit Pistons should trade into the first round
By Amaar Burton
1. To seize an opportunity in the East
With the high likelihood that LeBron James leaves the Eastern Conference in free agency, doors can be opening for other teams to make deep playoff runs and represent the conference in the NBA Finals.
Even if LeBron stays in the East and joins the Philadelphia 76ers or Boston Celtics, there could at least be a playoff spot available vacated by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
For the Pistons, that means they can move up in the conference standings after finishing ninth this past season. Detroit will have a new head coach, Dwane Casey, who turned the Toronto Raptors into a perennial East contender; Blake Griffin will be on the roster for a whole season to form an All-Star frontcourt tandem with Andre Drummond; and starting point guard Reggie Jackson will hopefully be healthy enough to play more than 45 games.
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Adding a rookie with first round talent to that mix could help lift the Pistons over the postseason hump. If it doesn’t mean giving up too much, trading into the first round would be a smart move.